Patient 616: Mason, A
by TheHobbieGirl
Summary: An escapee from a facility that tests psychics finds her way into the lives of the Avengers. I suck at summaries, more info inside Rated T but subject to change has cussing Main relationships though most will be hinted NatashaXClint SteveXOC
1. prologue

**A/N: This story is based on the new Avengers movie and contains Steve Rogers/OC and Clint/Natasha and hinted relationships that may become more obvious throughout. Rated incase, and some slight cussing. **

Rumbles of distant thunder still threatened the night into submission, though the rain was long gone. Leaving a wreck of twisted up roots and thick streams of mud. It clung to the fabric of her once crisp white collared shirt. Just caking on the extra weight her already weak bones had to handle.

Her hair hung in her face, drenched, flailing in pathetic little tangled wisps. All around her, it was dark, cold, and wet. The toll of her bare feet digging into the mud, causing her ankles to twist in unnatural ways, forced her to crawl on her stomach.

The rich smell of wet dirt filled her lungs. It tantalized her air intake, suffocating her with its bold essence. Along with her hitched breaths the only other sound was the occasional pop coming from her joints, resisting her every endeavor.

But she'd make it; she would escape her once expectant torment. And trade it, for something so wonderful, the thought itself was intoxicating. A taste of what had been taken away from her, to her preverbal sanctuary.

No one was sure what to do when the helicopter landed, and the gurney was being rushed inside. Maria Hill caught a glimpse of the patient. A young girl, no older than 18 or so, with long dark-brown hair and mud riddled clothes.

"Agent Romanoff," she called as the red headed agent stepped off the helicopter. "What the hell is this?" She inquired sternly.

Natasha kept a straight face, aside from her brows being slightly taught with tension. "I'm not sure," she stated almost blankly. "But she was awake when we first found her."

"And what does that mean?" Maria impatiently asked.

Natasha just shook her head in confusion, "She knew my name. She called me by it. She knew my code name even. And then-" she paused. "She said-My ledger was filthy, overtaken in red." Her voice grew in urgency. "This girl was in my head."

"She's intuitive?" Hill seemed to be asking herself. Then she snapped in realization. "Check her wrists, look for any form of id, she might be a runaway from the IRF." As her orders were barked, Natasha rushed inside.

**A/N: So I had this idea when I realized the director of Firefly and Avengers were the same guy. And it's not a crossover, but in Firefly (for all who don't know) there's this character named River. I don't want to give too much away, but my OC is slightly based off of her. Anyway, this is pretty short, but if I get some good feedback I'll post the other few chapters I've already finished. **

**Please R&R, and I'd love to hear any feedback! **

**-Ashley Ann (TheHobbieGirl)**


	2. Chapter 1

**A/N Hi and thank you for those of you who added this story to your alert box! That made me extremely happy . This is the first chapter but I almost considerate as another prologue (Sorry). But it's short so I think I'll end up just uploading chapter two today as well (which is much longer). Here we go!**

Fury closed his eyes in frustration, bringing his fingers to scratch at the edges of his eye patch (a habit he picked up over the years). With the clean up of Manhattan nearly complete on the 1st anniversary of the Avengers' big win, things should feel lighter in tidings.

Not for Nick. His job was stressful, he loved it, but god did he hate it. After long talks with whoever concerned the creation of such a team as the 'Avengers', problems arose. He knew all along the way the team would pan out, only coming together when truly needed, but his colleagues (though they act like his superiors) didn't agree with his sentiments.

They didn't want to trust the prayer that they'd come together, should an event arise. Fury understood these fears, but knew that they had nothing to worry about. He trusted his team, they came when he called out to them, and he knew they would do so no matter the predicament.

The apprehension for certifying the team as a true armada of sorts was infuriating him. He finally looked up, seeing his expectant partner, Maria, waiting to speak with him.

She seemed a bit frazzled. He could tell from her body language, that it was serious. Sighing in defeat, he finally gave her his full attention.

"What is it Hill, and it better be good news, because I'm not keen to being merciful today."

She pulled her lips in and raised her eyebrows. 'Great' she thought sarcastically. "I'm not sure how you'll take it sir, but it's in relation to the IRF. It could be a big break."

His eyebrows furrowed in thought. "And, what exactly does this task present that it should have relation to the IRF?" he questioned, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

She pulled a manila folder from under her arm and handed it to Fury. He took it and pulled out the article contents. It held a photo of a teenaged girl, and a few documents that went along.

Hill began to speak as Fury went through the files. " She was found, huddled up in a mud field 76 miles from any form of civilization. But she did have an id tag bracelet. Sir, she's an escapee from the facility." Fury looked up with a smile gracing his lips. Well, almost smile.

"This could be very promising-" he stopped. "How did she get out in the middle of nowhere in her condition?" He gave Hill a skeptical glance.

"MRI shows she has fractured ribs, and a broken wrist, as well as twisted ankles. A mile back they found torn fragments of a parachute. Sir, we think she jumped from a plain." She finished, her own bewilderment traveling through her speech. "Though we don't know for sure. She's awake, but not conscious."

He nodded, comprehending the whole situation. "She's here than?" he finally asked.

"Yes sir."

"Well than, I need to talk to this girl." He held up the id bracelet that had been put into the folder as well, he read the name, "Aileen Mason. Well alright than." He turned once more to Maria.

"We also took a scan of her head. We found something intriguing," she steppes aside, letting Fury pass in front of her.

"Well I hope you did, I'd be disappointed if you hadn't. And in case there was any question, I want to keep this extremely classified. No information should be held on file, nothing incriminating at least."

"Of course, sir."

**A/N Yes I know, it's very short and boring… I'm sorry. But the beginning all together (meaning the first few chapters) will be generally slow. Mostly because I plan on bringing each character in with their own chapter. But I promise it's beneficial to the story. In any case, Please R&R! It inspires me to write more! And thanks again to those of you who added this story. I plan on adding chapter two later tonight. **

**-Ashley Ann**


	3. Chapter 2

**A/N: Wow, 10 people have added this to their alert box! Thank you so much, it helps me get my creative muse working. Also thank you for the reviews, I love getting feedback. I want to know what you would like to see, and what you thought about the chapters, because I do take that into account. Anyway, this chapter is supposed to be slightly humorous (It is Tony's chapter after all). And just to be sure, would anyone mind if I hinted (subtly) Some Tony/Bruce and Tony/Natasha. I will work Pepper in eventually. Last thing! For some reason he was hard to write for me, it helps if you imagine his sarcastic voice **

A perfect sunny day, no clouds, slight wafting breezes. But that was just Tony's screensaver. At that moment, he wouldn't have realized if a whale fell through his ceiling. He was too preoccupied with his work. Which was really just a hologram that was intricately spaced throughout the room.

Tony pinched the bridge of his nose as he stared intensively at the floating design. He wondered why something so ridiculous would take a genius like him so long to crack.

He was building a decent blender. He was sick of his appliance store shit breaking when he wanted something to drink. But he was a weapons engineer (or was). This wasn't his line of expertise.

"Jarvis," he said in a slight singsong tone.

'Sir, it appears this design would not be as efficient either. I suggest buying a blender online.'

"Oh, wouldn't that be nice. Jarvis, I'm no quitter." Tony stated sarcastically as he stepped away from his project. "I'm bored. I'm not experiencing some sort of mid life appliance production crisis."

'Of course, should I just recommend some entertainment than?'

Tony just shook his head. "No, I'll just go check the clean energy stats. See if we still hold first. Which of course, we do."

'Very well sir, but it seems I'm receiving some activity from the S.H.I.E.D. data system.'

Stark stopped and snapped his fingers, a board of screens made of nothing but light appeared in front of him. He began moving his fingers and opening files.

'The mainframe says its classified, sir. Shall I break down the firewalls?'

"It would be," he said slightly preoccupied. "Yeah, go ahead."

'Downloading virus, the information should be available in three minutes.'

"Sounds like a plan," Tony smirked, funny how they thought he wasn't capable of obtaining their information. "Finally, something to do."

**A/N: Yeah, this one's short too… But I'm going to upload a chapter a day, so I hope that's an incentive to keep reading **


	4. Chapter 3

**A/N: I love all the people adding this story, but I would really appreciate more comments. It makes me feel like people are actually reading. Anyway, this is the longest chapter so far! :D I decided it was time to revisit my OC, get some more details and such. Natasha may seem out of character, but keep in mind, she's unraveled by the whole "This kid can read my mind." But she'll get better **

Natasha buzzed in, the door opened as she walked towards the medical bay. She'd let this become a part of her routine for the last week since the girl had come in. Not the girl, Aileen, since Aileen had come in.

Though calling her by 'the girl' would work just as well, seeing as she didn't remember who she was to begin with. After the possibility of candid information Fury thought he could get being lost, he had Natasha put in charge with helping with Aileen's condition.

Fury wasn't there though. He was on his own 'mission'. More like a business trip though. He wasn't even participating in his top priority. Instead Natasha was stuck fixing his problem. She didn't want to be involved with whatever this girl was. Sure, she wanted to help. Just as long as she could keep her memories to herself.

She went to the patient's room, pressing a password into the keypad. It beeped and a green light indicated she could enter. She turned the handle and pushed the heavy door open with ease. Smiling as sweetly as she could, she entered.

Sitting in the middle of the floor, not on the bed, or in her chair, but on the floor, sitting on her knees, was the girl. Natasha tried to hide her look of confusion by puckering her lips before speaking.

"Aileen, it's me." But the girl made no effort to give the agent attention. She kept her head directed on a spot on the wall, just past from where Natasha had walked in. She was staring right past her.

Natasha bit the inside of her cheek. They needed to run more tests, she didn't have just amnesia. She was really sick. But Fury assured that the girl, besides being dehydrated when she arrived, was at peak physical condition. Which seemed odd, given none of her food on her tray had been eaten. It never was, besides small nibbles on crackers, but she would just spit most of that out. And Aileen looked hollow. Her eyes sunken, her shoulders thin.

But if anyone knew appearances counted for nothing, it was Natasha. "Aren't you hungry?" She didn't expect an answer. "You haven't been eat-"

"I ate before I got here." Mumbled Aileen. Natasha straightened her back and cocked her head slightly. Had she really just heard her speak? Deciding to progress with the dialogue so she wouldn't recede back into her trance like state, Natasha cleared her throat, setting the tray down.

"Yeah, but if you keep this up, we're going to have to force feed you. It's not fun. You can't just live off of water and crackers. You need substantial food." She picked up an apple slice from the tray. "Here, eat this."

Aileen moved her head, but her eyes still stared past when she faced the agent fully. After a moment of stillness, she blinked a few times and closed her eyes in a frustrated fashion. Natasha stood on and watched, not sure what was happening.

"Do you have a headache-" But she stopped mid sentence when Aileen brought her shaky hands clashing to her head. Natasha walked to her then, as Aileen began to run her hands through her hair, gripping her scalp as her small frame hunched over her knees. "Aileen," She tried with a sterner voice.

Putting her hands on the girl's shoulders, Romanoff shook her gently. The girl just began to shutter, as if sobs were racking her body, but a cry never left her lips. Natasha looked up at the security camera that hung in the corner. "I need a doctor!" She said up to it, positive someone was keeping an eye on them.

"Who-" Natasha snapped her head down at the sound of a sad whisper, Aileen was trying to tell her something, her frame beginning to convulse more violently. The agent's eyes grew wide; afraid of what this girl could say, remembering a week ago, how she'd said 'her ledger was filthy.'

"'Who' what," she asked in a false calm veneer.

"Who-" She tried again before finally pulling her head up. Her face was drenched in tears and her eyes seemed to have gained some depth. "Who's in my head?" She sputtered out, with no breath behind the words, Natasha relied on lip reading.

Instead of answering, she panicked. She whipped her head back up to the camera. "I need some help right now! Goddammit!" Her rage flew through her body and made her unconsciously dig her fingers into Aileen's shoulders. The girl winced and tried to twist away. But Natasha tried to keep the girl still.

Aileen could feel the Woman's anger radiating off her skin. And she could see it in her mind. But Aileen didn't know any better, she didn't know what she was doing was extraordinary. And so she just let it go. Her expression relaxed, her muscles loosened, and her eyes fell back into a haze. She'd rather shut it all out than deal with this intense emotion. She's rather let the voices become an echo, indistinguishable, undecipherable. Gone.

Natasha felt the change in Aileen's posture and gave the girl her full attention. She had slipped back into her shell. She was gone, again. Natasha sighed and released Aileen's shoulders. She was about to stand up when she noticed bruises on her neck where her shirt had gathered down her shoulder. They hadn't been there before, and Natasha knew that she hadn't cause them, she'd been holding her shoulder, not neck.

"What is this?" She asked herself, running a hand across the little bruises. She was confounded by the discovery of the bruises. The girl didn't seem the type. Sure, her outside appearance was that of a thin teen, but Natasha knew the facts. She'd had injuries when she first came to headquarters. They had practically healed in three days. She was unnerved. This girl was a mystery. She could heal, but bruise. She could be mindless and empty, but see someone else's thoughts. This girl could see into her mind, her secrets, and her fears. All of it up for display. It was unsettling.

She got up and staggered to the door, keeping her eyes on Aileen as she typed in the exit code. The sound of a small beep told her she had successfully typed in the password. She opened the door and stepped out in one swift motion.

Closing it and checking it was locked, she let out a sigh of relief. This task was eating away at her presumed nerves of steel. Clearing her throat she tried to think through what had happened. She ran through scenarios that could explain Aileen's sudden change in behavior.

"Mental break down, maybe she's remembering, maybe she saw one of my memories, seizure-" She flinched in realization and took off running to the medical bay main office.

"Hey!" She spat aggressively as a medical staff member tried to walk past her. He seemed to be threatened, but kept a decent confident demeanor. "I've been yelling for help! I think patient 616 just had a seizure! Get staff down there now." Her words seemed to pass right through him; he nodded only slightly and began walking towards the patient ward as he put his hand on his ear to activate his communicator.

"I have received urgent information from Black Widow, patient 616 has had another episode." He said as he walked, much too calmly she thought.

It's like they had known, had seen her on the monitor, but knew they couldn't help her. It made her stomach knot.

"Another?" Natasha let slip as he disappeared around the corner. How could Fury not have warned her that her 'one and only priority' was prone to violent anxiety related episodes. Why keep secrets from trusted operatives?

She let her jaw move to one side, to keep from grinding her teeth. She thought about going back to Aileen, answer questions, get answers. But she couldn't. She didn't have it in her, not this time.

"Tasha," Clint's voice rang down the hallway, riveting her back to reality. His voice seemed tinged with worry, and it made her senses go on alert.

"Clint, what, what is it?" She said turning to meet him. He surprised her when he grabbed the sides of her arms so he could stand directly in front of her.

He needed to look down at her; he knew that was the easiest (not to say it isn't hard) way to get her to tell the truth. She let her jaw move forward again in aggravation. She's gone through the overly serious Clint routine. But that didn't stop him.

"Natasha, what did she do? What did she say," he was being stern, and it bothered her. She couldn't figure out why he was being so intense. Like he was scared of what Aileen had seen lurking in Natasha's head. She had similar sentiments if that was the case.

"Clint. Tell me what the hell is going on, or so help me, I'm going break something or someone, and it won't end well." He knew she was only partially serious.

She tensed up as he drew in a deep breath, narrowing his eyes, looking so intensely into hers she had to suppress the shiver that threatened to commence. "This isn't the first time 616 has- well reacted like she did."

"Yeah, I figured that out, no thanks to anyone keeping me in the loop. I was assigned with this task, so why does everyone else know more than I do?" She backed away from him, pulling her arms free from his grasps.

He furrowed his brows in pity, if it was for himself or her, he wasn't sure. "Because," He stepped closer again but withheld from grabbing her arms again, "so far, you are the only person who's gotten a word out of that girl. She reacts to you, but you're apprehensive about her. So we made the call to keep you from the unnecessary information. I don't even know everything, it's being kept in the closet for a reason."

"Unnecessary information? She could have died. And no one came when I called for help! I shouldn't have to worry about my own team putting me in predicaments where I'm withheld from COMPKETELY necessary information-" She topped herself. Her voice was beginning to elevate with her rage.

"I'm sorry Tasha, I really am. I recommended you be kept from the information,

because-" He stopped, trying to think of the right words. "Because Fury said you were the one who had spoken to her, had a connection with her, so you would have to be the one to help her. And I knew you didn't want to." He rested a hand lightly on her arm, not to trap her, but to comfort her.

Her face had become contorted with the upsetting scenario of this whole fiasco weighing on her mind. "She saw my most painful memories Clint." Her voice broke as she tried to be strong. Her eyes filled with threatening tears as she tried to calm herself. "I'm scared of what she'll find, what she could bring out of me. I- I just-"

The tears started falling and Clint took her into an embrace, which she willingly accepted. He wasn't used to her being so broken, so vulnerable. But he would help her.

She took in a hitched breath, "Fury doesn't want me to help her. He wants his stupid information. It's all about the damn info. She's starving herself. I'm terrified of what she can do, but I'm mortified at the condition she's in." she pulled back slightly so she could look Clint in the eyes. "I don't care what facility she's escaped from, she can't remember anyway. All I know is she needs real help. A specialist, or something."

He nodded, and pulled her back into their embrace, resting his hand on the back of her head, and the other around her waist. "We will, we'll help her, got that?" He whispered into her ear reassuringly. He liked the closeness and comfort he felt holding her to him. He knew in any other circumstance this might be too much affection for her to handle. But Romanoff was wounded, so she granted him permission to comfort her bare nerves. She was breaking, and he needed to reassemble her.

"Thank you," she said in a low whisper, relieved to have this one constant, this one privilege, Barton was her crutch.

After being positive she had calmed down he pulled away and put both his hands on her waist. "Now tell me what patient 616 said to you." He wasn't talking down at her this time. This time he was asking her, pleading for her to share her torments.

Natasha lifted her chin and rolled her shoulders back slightly. "I don't think it had anything to do with me this time. And I hope I'm not wrong because- it's haunting." he nodded, urging her to continue, hoping she wouldn't break down again. "Just like every day, I came in to check if she'd eaten. And just like everyday, she hadn't. So I confronted her, and she answered me."

"What did she say?"

Natasha locked gazes with him, he thought he felt the hairs on his neck stand up on end, but tried to focus on her words.

"She said, 'I ate before I came here'. But that was almost a week ago. The only things she's had are crackers and water, and in small portions. And then I told her to try an apple slice. She looked up at me, but not directly. Like a lens is always over her eyes." She paused, creasing her brows. "She started blinking, and her eyes, they woke up. They looked alert. She started to have some sort of anxiety attack asking me 'Who's in my head?' God, I just hope it wasn't something she saw in me."

"And then?" Clint pressed, wanting her to tell the whole truth.

"She just, grew still again. Like nothing happened. She wasn't even aware of me. She was just- sitting there." Natasha trailed off, her own gaze falling to the floor.

"All right, let's go" He started leading her away.

"What's your plan?"

"I'm breaking protocol, I know Fury wants this to stay classified, but I'm calling in Banner." He looked at her face briefly, checking for an indication of agreement. She smiled at him and he returned a smirk. The sooner patient 616 got better, the faster Natasha would too. At least that's what he hoped with every fiber of his being.

**A/N: Yes, I finally have indicated Clintasha! Some feels for you guys they are my favorite pairing, but I love them all. Like I said, Natasha isn't her regular tough self. But I think it's somewhat fitting. We know she can get flustered, like when she first met the Hulk? Yeah, she was completely undone. So I hope this isn't too unrealistic. Ugh, I'm rambling. Please R&R! **

**-Ashley Ann **


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